The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

"Your Majesty, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now." Daiyu really didn't want to say another word; she knew very well that Yuanchun disliked her.

Yuan Chun suddenly calmed down: "Even if, as you say, the students are dissatisfied, so what? Would they dare not participate in the imperial examination? Besides, the situation in the southeast is unstable right now. My uncle is about to take up his post as the Zhejiang Provincial Governor, and the Prince of Nan'an will be leading the troops. Everything will be fine."

It seems the waters here run very deep. Wang Ziteng and the Nan'an Prince's Mansion are definitely on the Second Prince's side, and now even my uncle is caught up in it.

A phrase suddenly flashed through Daiyu's mind: "wipe out the whole family." Could it be that the Fourth Prince—no, the Fourth Prince doesn't have that kind of ability.

emperor?

Daiyu couldn't help but shiver, then looked at Yuanchun very seriously: "Since Your Majesty is so confident, then there's no need to tell me all this. If Your Majesty wants to say that I'm heartless, then I also have something to say to Your Majesty."

The phrase "disowning one's own family" startled Yuan Chun, but what shocked her even more was Daiyu's gaze at that moment—sharp as a knife.

“My uncle is an upright man. The chaos in the southeast is not a place for him to stay. If Your Majesty is thinking long-term, you should understand that no one’s promises to you count. Only the things you can decide for yourself count.”

After saying this, Daiyu ignored Yuanchun's expression and got up to take her leave.

Yuan Chun looked at Daiyu's back and felt inexplicably guilty—she had finally managed to get her hands on Daiyu and was thinking of winning her over, but how did it turn out like this?

What Daiyu said actually shook Yuanchun's resolve.

However, Daiyu didn't really care what Yuanchun thought. Or rather, Yuanchun's words reminded Daiyu—why was it so easy for the Second Prince to activate the Nan'an Prince's Mansion? His Majesty wanted to take action against the Four Kings and Eight Dukes. Did His Majesty actually intend to wipe them all out at once?

The Governor-General of Liangjiang was the Empress's brother, so who was the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang? Daiyu felt that she had to discuss these matters with Xiao Tingjun first.

Upon receiving news of Daiyu, Xiao Tingjun pondered for a moment: "Liu Guangyuan, the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang, is Father Emperor's cousin."

Wow, looks like someone extraordinary.

"Alright, it's not something you can figure out in a short time. Since it's a war, everything will be fine once we win." Xiao Tingjun told Daiyu not to worry. "Yu'er, you haven't had a proper rest for quite some time. There's nothing to do lately, so you should take a good rest."

“It’s a pity we can’t rest yet. Didn’t I mention to you the other day that my second aunt’s son-in-law runs an antique shop in the capital? Look, what did I have someone buy from him?” Daiyu asked Zijuan to bring out a rosewood box with a carved ruyi pattern, inside which was a Chengni inkstone shaped like the character “风” (wind).

Xiao Tingjun took it and examined it: "It's a treasure. It's grayish-brown in color with a hint of purple, and its texture is dense and smooth. But what's so special about it?"

“Take a closer look.” Daiyu turned the inkstone over, and Xiao Tingjun leaned closer to examine it and discovered the clue.

The inkstone has a three-line seal script inscription on the back: the two sides read "May sons and grandsons treasure it forever," and the middle line has six characters, "Treasure of the Imperial Writings of the Emperor."

"A gift bestowed by the emperor?" Xiao Tingjun was stunned.

Chapter 77 A Little Trick to Scam Madam Wang

Xiao Tingjun certainly understood the weight of the six characters "Wan Ji Chen Han Zhi Bao" (Treasure of Ten Thousand Talents and Imperial Writings), and this wind-shaped Chengni inkstone was undoubtedly a gift from the emperor.

“If it were any other antique shop, I wouldn’t be so surprised, but it happened to be Leng Zixing’s shop, and his mother-in-law was Zhou Rui’s wife, who was my second aunt’s maid. I remember when I first arrived at Rongguo Mansion that year, the three characters ‘Rongxi Hall’ were also personally inscribed by the emperor.” Daiyu thought, if Yuanyang could steal things from Grandmother Jia and give them to Wang Xifeng and Jia Lian, would Zhou Rui’s wife steal things from my second aunt?

Or perhaps, the second aunt was simply embezzling from the shop—without anyone helping him behind the scenes, Leng Zixing wouldn't have been able to open such an antique shop in the capital.

"What does Yu'er plan to do?" Xiao Tingjun's fingers traced the edge of the inkstone.

"I want to investigate Leng Zixing first, and I need your help." On Daiyu's side, apart from her brother Zijuan, there was no one else she could rely on for errands outside. However, if it was her brother Zijuan, his frequent appearances at Leng Zixing's shop would easily arouse suspicion, so she had to borrow someone from Xiao Tingjun.

The couple quickly reached an agreement, without needing Daiyu to intervene, as Xiao Tingjun had plenty of people under his command to handle the matter.

Soon, Daiyu received several treasures that she recognized very well: a bronze inlaid with gold and silver cloud and thunder pattern three-legged incense burner, which she had seen in Rongxi Hall before. The lid and body were inlaid with gold and silver cloud and thunder pattern, and the rim of the lid was decorated with a flat meander pattern.

A Guanyin image embroidered with gold thread. Gold thread embroidery is a traditional hand embroidery technique that uses twisted gold thread to create patterns, also known as "flat gold embroidery".

Upon seeing the Guanyin statue, Daiyu couldn't help but sigh, "My second aunt usually loves to worship Buddha, but even such a beautiful and dazzling Guanyin statue could be stolen and sold. I'm afraid she doesn't really care about Buddha."

Zijuan, who was listening nearby, shook her head and said, "Second Madam is not truly devoted to Buddhism. She uses the excuse of worshipping Buddha to make Third Master Huan copy scriptures all the time. What kind of stepmother is she?"

Zijuan didn't finish her sentence, but Daiyu understood what she meant: Second Aunt always appeared kind on the outside but was actually malicious on the inside. She put on a good show in front of others, but in reality, she was a wolf in sheep's clothing, hiding her malice beneath her facade.

"My maternal aunt's birthday is coming up soon. Take the gifts we've prepared and let's go visit her. I've been cared for by the old lady for so many years, and the servants in the mansion always say that everything I use is from the Jia family. Now that I've married into a higher social class, going back to bring some honor to the Rongguo Mansion is my way of repaying my maternal uncle." Daiyu was very curious to see what her second maternal aunt's expression would be when she saw these gifts.

The maids were all very angry about the grievances they had suffered in the Rongguo Mansion in the past. However, Xueyan did not want to go to the Rongguo Mansion and volunteered to stay and look after the house. Chunyu, on the other hand, wanted to go and see what was going on, so she went out with Zijuan to accompany Daiyu.

Madam Xing has never been favored by the old lady and has no presence in the Rongguo Mansion. Even her birthday celebrations are kept quiet. Of course, this is also partly due to her own stinginess and unwillingness to spend money. Otherwise, it would have been reasonable for her to have the kitchen prepare a banquet to celebrate.

However, Madam Xing was startled to hear a servant report that Princess Yi had arrived. In the past, before Lin Yatou was married, she rarely came to their main courtyard. Why was she here today?

Upon seeing the gifts Daiyu brought, Madam Xing immediately beamed with joy: there was a jade sheep, a turquoise compass, and a string of amber and turquoise birds, as well as jade pendants, agate and crystal ring ornaments, a piece of Shu brocade and a piece of gauze—all fine items.

These things are more numerous and more valuable than what Yuan Chun gave back to the mansion and to Grandmother Jia.

At the time, everyone in the mansion considered themselves of high status because they had received a reward, especially Madam Wang. When Madam Xing saw the gift, she became proud and thought that she would definitely show it off in front of Madam Wang later. Just thinking about how embarrassed Madam Wang would be made Madam Xing very happy.

"It's kind of you to think of me, my niece." After saying this with a smile, Madam Xing quickly changed her address, "Now you should call me Princess Consort. I didn't know the Princess Consort was coming today. If I had known, I would have asked your second sister to come back and talk to you."

No sooner had she finished speaking than news spread that Yingchun had returned. Madam Xing was even happier—although Yingchun was not her daughter, things were different now. Yingchun had married Sun Shaozu and, thanks to the promotion of Daiyu's husband, had been promoted to the fourth rank. Madam Xing felt that Daiyu had been very good to their eldest son's family.

As Yingchun entered the room, she heard Madam Xing excitedly thanking Daiyu: "Your second brother-in-law's promotion is all thanks to the help of the Princess and the Prince. You know your second sister isn't good with words, so she probably hasn't properly thanked you. Princess, please don't take it to heart. Your eldest uncle and I remember the kindness you and the Prince have shown us."

Daiyu was a little overwhelmed by the enthusiasm, so she made an excuse to visit her third and fourth sisters and bid farewell to Madam Xing with Yingchun, but promised Madam Xing that she would come over for lunch.

Madam Xing quickly summoned Wang Shanbao's wife and told her to go to the kitchen and instruct them to prepare a feast.

Daiyu and Yingchun went to pay their respects to Grandmother Jia first. Originally, Daiyu was still thinking about whether to reveal Leng Zixing's matter today, but she didn't expect that her second aunt was also in Grandmother Jia's room, and she was just like her daughter.

"Now that my niece is a princess, things are different. If your second brother-in-law can help her, why can't he help his uncle?" Lady Wang had never liked Daiyu, but now that Daiyu was a princess, she was living a very glamorous life. Lady Wang had finally seized an opportunity, so she naturally had to speak up quickly and take this chance to sow discord between Lady Wang and Grandmother Jia.

Grandmother Jia has quite a bit of private money, and these days she's noticed that because Daiyu is getting married into a higher social class, Grandmother Jia is always trying to favor Daiyu in her words and actions. She doesn't want Grandmother Jia to leave even a single bit of her private money for Daiyu.

These words are exactly the same as those of Yuan Chun in the palace. They really are mother and daughter, Daiyu couldn't help but think.

"Second Aunt's words are truly difficult to answer. How could it be my place to worry about Second Uncle's affairs? There's the Empress in the palace, and Uncle outside the palace, don't you think so, Second Aunt?" When Daiyu said this, she deliberately glanced at Grandmother Jia: The old lady didn't stop Second Aunt immediately, which shows that the old lady probably has some thoughts about her as well.

Since my second aunt has come to me of her own accord, then I shouldn't blame myself for not choosing a good day.

"Look at what Your Highness is saying. Your second uncle really did get it thanks to the Empress in the palace." Lady Wang was very proud of Jia Zheng's promotion. "As for my brother, he has indeed been favored by His Majesty over the years."

Daiyu smiled coldly upon hearing this: "No wonder. There was something I shouldn't have said today because it's my eldest aunt's special day, but my second aunt's behavior has made it impossible for me to remain silent."

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang's eyelids twitched for some reason.

“A few days ago, the Prince bought a few things from outside and brought them home. They looked familiar to me. Since I have the opportunity today, I would like to ask the old lady to take a look.” With a glance from Daiyu, Zijuan went out and quickly came back with two items.

One of the items is a bronze inlaid with gold and silver cloud and thunder pattern three-legged incense burner, and the other is a gold-embroidered Guanyin statue.

When Grandmother Jia saw the bronze inlaid with gold and silver cloud and thunder pattern three-legged incense burner, she was stunned. Lady Wang also immediately sensed something was wrong and didn't know what to say for a moment.

"Grandma, these two items look familiar to me, but they shouldn't be lying around outside. Our family didn't just become rich recently, so I'm sending them here for you to take a look, so that I don't make a mistake." Daiyu gestured to Zijuan to take them to Grandma Jia.

Grandmother Jia had no choice but to ask Amber to bring her own reading glasses. She put them on shakily and examined the two treasures.

"Yu'er, this thing..." Grandmother Jia had already recognized it; it was a treasure displayed in Rongxi Hall, a gift bestowed by the late emperor.

Grandmother Jia couldn't help but think of the time when Yuanyang stole things from her storeroom to sell. Ever since that incident, Grandmother Jia had taken stock of her private storeroom, and now the key was in her own hands.

So, who stole the things from Rongxi Hall?

Moreover, selling imperial gifts is far more serious than selling the dowry that the Princess gave to Min'er—imperial gifts cannot be sold, and even damaging them is a serious crime.

Now, the treasure bestowed by the late emperor has actually been bought by Daiyu and her husband outside. If this is investigated, the entire Rongguo Mansion will be guilty.

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Grandmother Jia immediately lowered her voice and said, "Everyone else, please leave." Only Daiyu and Lady Wang remained.

Chapter 78 Madam Wang's framing is exposed

Seeing that everyone else had left, Madam Wang realized something was wrong and quickly knelt down to kowtow and beg forgiveness from Grandmother Jia: "Grandmother, this, this thing, your daughter-in-law doesn't know anything about it, how, how could it be outside..."

She became increasingly unsure of herself as she spoke, and dared not look up.

In fact, when she took the initiative to speak, she silently revealed everything.

Lady Wang was a fool; she thought that by taking the initiative to defend herself, she could extricate herself from the blame.

Grandmother Jia glared at Lady Wang, but her tone and attitude towards Daiyu were completely different: "Yu'er, how did you and the Prince obtain this?"

Now that the truth had been revealed, Daiyu had no need to hide it anymore. However, she omitted many details and directly pointed to Leng Zixing: "It was originally bought by one of the prince's subordinates as a gift for the prince. The prince didn't pay much attention to it and just showed it to me casually. I thought this incense burner was really exquisite and lovely, so I admired it carefully. But the more I looked at it, the more familiar it seemed. Later, when I saw the words engraved on the bottom, I remembered that when I first came to the capital and visited my second uncle for the first time, there was a very similar-looking ornament in Rongxi Hall."

"However, I'm not sure, which is why I thought I'd bring it over and ask the old lady to take a look. Perhaps the Imperial Workshop made several of these same incense burners at once, and the late emperor used them to reward meritorious officials."

"However, I also heard the prince say that it was bought from an antique shop. Yu'er dared not make a sound and hurriedly sent someone to inquire about the antique shop. Unexpectedly, the shop seemed to have some connection with her second aunt, because the shop owner was very arrogant outside, saying that he had someone backing him up in the Rongguo Mansion, and that even the Wang family would take care of him."

Grandmother Jia glared at Lady Wang, her eyes blazing with fury: "Tell me, who is this person? What is her relationship with you?"

Seeing that Grandmother Jia was angry, Daiyu deliberately said, "Grandmother, don't be anxious or angry. I asked the Prince to inquire about this matter carefully. The shop owner is called Leng Zixing. I didn't know who he was at first. It was Xueyan who reminded me that he was Sister Zhou, who was my second aunt's maid. Her son-in-law is called Leng Zixing."

Upon hearing that Daiyu had even inquired about this, Madam Wang sensed something was amiss. Her mind raced, and she quickly kowtowed, begging for forgiveness: "Old Madam, this has nothing to do with me. It must be that Zhou Rui's wife who stole things from the house to sell. Old Madam, think about it, Yuanyang was so trusted by you, yet she still betrayed you for personal gain. That Zhou Rui's wife must be..."

Lady Wang thought that since she had framed Zhou Rui's wife, Zhou Rui's wife would definitely not dare to refute her—the lives of her entire family were in her hands, after all, her indenture was with her, not in the Jia family mansion.

But to her surprise, Daiyu's next words dealt her a heavy blow.

“Grandma, the Prince and I didn’t dare to make a decision on this matter lightly. So we sent someone to investigate the antique shop and found that it contained many prohibited items. Therefore, without discussing it with you, we asked the Prince to take action and apprehend Leng Zixing first, so that he wouldn’t spread rumors and make false accusations outside.” Daiyu and Xiao Tingjun had already discussed it and decided to take Leng Zixing down first, so that he would not have any chance to pass on any information to anyone.

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang was immediately dumbfounded, pointing at Daiyu: "You, you all, how dare you?"

“Madam, isn’t this for the good of the household? If it weren’t for us capturing him, but rather Shuntian Prefecture, Madam, tell me, wouldn’t Leng Zixing make baseless accusations? In that case, not only Madam, but the entire household would be implicated, wouldn’t it?” The reason why Daiyu and Xiao Tingjun had to take action was to prevent the Second Prince or the Fourth Prince from getting hold of the Rongguo Mansion’s secrets. If they used this to cause trouble, it would only add to Xiao Tingjun’s problems.

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia felt that Daiyu and her husband had handled the situation very well. She quickly thanked Daiyu and then immediately called over Amber: "Go, without disturbing anyone else, invite Zhou Rui's wife here."

Amber quickly accepted the order and left. Madam Wang knelt down, not daring to speak again, while secretly pondering how to shift all the blame onto Zhou Rui's family in order to protect herself.

It must be said that like master, like servant. Zhou Rui's wife had already learned from her daughter that her son-in-law was in trouble. She was thinking of quickly asking Lady Wang for help, but when she learned that Lady Wang was with Grandmother Jia, she dared not go to ask her rashly.

Just then, Amber came to call, and Zhou Rui's wife immediately sensed danger. She quickly smiled and asked Amber, "Grandma, is there something you need?"

Ever since Yuanyang's incident, although Amber was the most trusted servant of Grandmother Jia, she had learned her lesson. Upon hearing Zhou Rui's question, she only said, "Sister Zhou, you'll know when you get there. Hurry up and go, the old lady and madam are waiting."

Seeing that Amber refused to speak, Zhou Rui's wife had a guess in her heart. When she entered Grandmother Jia's room, she saw that even Madam Wang was kneeling on the ground. You know, the old lady usually liked to show her kindness and generosity. Not to mention Madam Wang, who had a grandson, even the younger generation like Wang Xifeng and Li Wan never asked them to kneel. She immediately felt that something was wrong, and without waiting for others to say anything, she quickly knelt down.

"Grandma, please, Grandma, do justice for my family!" Zhou Rui's wife knelt and kowtowed at least five times before raising her head. "Grandma, although the antique shop is registered under my son-in-law's name, all the profits go to Madam. Now, I don't know how, we've offended some high-ranking official in the capital. Please, Grandma and Madam, have mercy on my family..."

Before she could finish speaking, Madam Wang immediately scolded, "What nonsense are you spouting? You treacherous, ungrateful dog, don't forget whose slaves your whole family are!"

Lady Wang's original intention was to remind Zhou Rui's wife not to speak carelessly, as the indenture was still in her possession. However, these words reached the ears of Grandmother Jia, who was naturally extremely displeased: "The mistress of the Rongguo Mansion is indeed a fine young lady from the Wang family."

Zhou Rui's wife knelt and turned to Madam Wang, kowtowing repeatedly before saying, "Madam, it's not that I'm talking nonsense, but that the old lady is wise. This matter is so important, how can I possibly bear the responsibility?"

"You dog servant! I've always treated you well, and you're a heartless wretch!" Madam Wang was so angry she was dizzy. Ignoring Grandmother Jia, she got up and slapped Zhou Rui's wife twice with great force. Zhou Rui's wife's face immediately became red and swollen, but she was not appeased and continued to berate her.

Zhou Rui's wife kowtowed and tried to defend herself, creating a chaotic scene.

Grandmother Jia glanced at Daiyu, who had remained silent throughout, then looked at the two fools before her and immediately raised her voice to shout, "Shut up, both of you!!"

Madam Wang and Zhou Rui's wife were stunned by the shout and remained silent for a moment.

Grandmother Jia ignored them and instead looked at Daiyu: "Yu'er, you are the one who knows what you're doing. Now that things haven't escalated outside, it's best to resolve this within the family behind closed doors. What do you say, Yu'er?"

It was only then that Zhou Rui's wife noticed Daiyu. Just now, when she entered the room, she was thinking about how to offend her son-in-law, and her eyes were only on the old lady.